Fortissimo!
by Empatheia
Summary: [Free for all] Band camp AU. Sasuke the prodigy flautist. Read at your own risk.


**A/N: Ravenpirate**, this is _your fault._

All people who aren't Ravepirate: she used an icon in a LiveJournal thread that contained Sasuke with a flute. This sad load of dung was spawned by that fateful comment. Read at your own risk.

**xoxoxox**

_**I: Fortissimo**_

**xoxoxox**

"Naruto! Don't forget your instrument, you idiot boy!"

Boy in question slapped his forehead and made an about-face the military would have been proud of. "Crap! Thanks, Granny Tsunade!" He snatched the long black case out of her hand and bolted for the bus with his lunchbag dangling from his teeth.

"Hmph," said Tsunade, who wasn't really his grandmother. She'd adopted him a short time ago. His parents had died in a hiking accident (something involving bears and ketchup, Tsunade never answered Naruto when he asked) a long time ago, but she hadn't been around much until a couple years ago. Before that, Naruto'd skipped around foster homes and stayed with his uncle Iruka whenever possible, but never anything really stable until Tsunade came along. She could be weird sometimes, and her obsession with anti-aging creams bordered on creepy, but he couldn't deny that she was a decent caretaker.

The bus was pulling away from the curb by the time he reached it. He yelled at it, but it didn't stop. Honestly, if they hated having him hanging off the back of the bus by the emergency door handles so much, they'd wait five seconds for him to get on properly. He had to admit, though, that traveling this way was way more fun than sitting with Sasuke. He got a few rocks in the face on occasion from the tires, yeah, but the rocks didn't _mean_ it like Sasuke's knuckles did.

The school was only a ten minute ride away anyway. Piece of cake. He jumped off the bus when it slowed down and smirked at his friends as they piled off. Band geeks all, but pretty cool considering.

Sakura hit him with her clarinet the second she came off the last step. "Naruto, you moron! How many times do I have to tell you not to do that! One of these days you're going to fall off and _die. _You _moron."_

"Sakura-_chaaannn_," he whined, rubbing the fresh bump. It was just like him to fall head over heels in crush with such a violent girl. But her pink hair was so soft! And she was so clever! Really, he didn't much chance against that kind of double whammy. "It wouldn't wait for me!"

"Then don't be late!" she snapped, then turned up her nose and stalked off arm in arm with Ino. Ah, so they weren't fighting today-- Sasuke must have done something to piss them both off. Otherwise they would have been tearing each other's hair out over who got to sit behind him in class.

"N-naruto-kun," Hinata whispered, clutching her piccolo case to her chest as though it would protect her from something. "Are you all right?"

"Ahaha! I'm fine, Hinata-chan! Don't worry, my head is harder than steel!"

His claim was sorely tested a moment later as Sasuke came down the steps and brained him with his (tempered steel) case. "Hey, dead last."

"Saaaasu_ke_," Naruto whined. "What was that for?"

"Being an idiot. You're blocking the way for people trying to get off the bus." Sasuke ran his fingers through his coarse dark hair and sighed.

Naruto stuck his tongue out at his best friend slash worst enemy slash eternal rival. Sasuke was a cold-hearted bastard 99 of the time, and a weepy emotional idiot the remaining percent. Naruto really had no idea why they were friends, except that no one's opinion mattered more to him and no one else really understood what being an orphan meant. Even in the worst of times, Naruto had had Iruka to watch out for him-- Sasuke hadn't had anyone like that after his brother'd gone insane and murdered his entire family before vanishing into the wilds of Alaska.

They _got_ each other in a way that nobody else really could, so they were friends. Screwed up and not really recognizable as proper 'friends' albeit, but friends they were.

"Now _you're_ blocking the way, Sasuke," Shikamaru said grumpily from behind him. "I'd recommend moving before Chouji makes it up here, you know he can't see anything past his tuba."

Sasuke moved to let Shikamaru saunter pass him. Chouji followed a minute later with his enormous instrument held blindly in front of him. They all knew well enough to get the hell out of the way when the tuba came through. "You have two minutes to get to class," Shikamaru yelled over his shoulder. "You're going to be late if you keep standing around there looking dumb."

Naruto and Sasuke shot him identical scowls, then set off at a forced stroll. They would not be seen hurrying anywhere, let alone to _band_. Even if it was secretly their favourite class. Even if Kakashi-sensei secretly scared the crap out of them. It would be bad for their image to be seen in a panic. Besides, there was such a thing as being fashionably late.

They made it on time after all, breathing hidden sighs of relief as they sank into their seats ten seconds before the bell. Kakashi-sensei was nowhere to be seen, but he was always late. Even so, he unfailingly knew when his students were late even one minute, despite not actually seeming to be present.

"Set up!" Ino blared commandingly.

The room fell into an ordered scramble, chairs flying and instruments somehow avoiding damage in the kerfuffle. The room was neatly set up within three minutes.

Lee cleared his throat. "Attention! Stand!" He set into a roll on his snare drum. His hands were superhumanly fast and never missed a beat. Everyone knew that he actually had zero natural talent, but that he practiced at home for hours until his palms bled from clutching the sticks. He was a wonderful drummer now.

Finally, he smashed the cymbal and the door opened, right on cue.

"Good morning, Kakashi-sensei!" the class yelled. If they were not enthusiastic enough, he would make them play arpeggios for the first half hour of the class without breaks.

"Ahh, good morning," the silver-haired teacher said congenially, waving at them. "I trust you've all got your permission forms for me? Camp is in three days and I will not tolerate absenteeism."

The class nodded vigorously. They wouldn't be stupid enough to forget a permission form with him. He was too scary.

"Ahh, good, good. All right! Sit down and shut up! Time to warm up!"

For the next ten minutes, he drilled them mercilessly on scales and tongueing exercises, only deeming them 'warmed up' when they were gasping for breath and red-faced. "Good," he said at last. "Pull out _To the Summit_."

A rustle of papers and a whisper of expectation. Everyone loved playing this piece, and not just because it was a dark, thrilling tune.

"Sasuke? You ready?" Kakashi-sensei asked.

Said boy nodded, raised his silver flute to his lips, and began to play the free-form intro.

The class sat in awe. He was a genius, they knew, the kind that only comes along once in five years. His tone was perfect, his timing just as perfect, and his range was nearly twice that of the rest of the flute section. It was an unearthly and shiveringly beautiful sound. He never had off days.

Naruto listened ruefully. He didn't have the same sort of natural talent, but he played trombone-- all he really had to do was be loud and fairly on key and he'd be fine at this level. Nobody ever asked the trombones to play complex melodies. They were just expected to do the grunt work in the background. Naruto was good at that. He was really good at being loud, too, which surprised no one.

"Timpani," Kakashi-sensei mouthed, gesturing to Neji, who was of course already in position. He was another sort of genius. He could pick up any percussion instrument and play it perfectly. He was best on the timpani, however-- they were large, but required a delicate and precise touch to make them resonate just right.

The saxophones hummed into being beneath Sasuke's soaring flute strains. Kiba was head alto sax, Tenten head tenor, and Shino played the baritone. They worked well together, though they still lamented the loss of Hinata to the flute section. Tenten was very good, but the chemistry between Kiba, Hinata, and Shino could not be matched by any other arrangement. Tenten had come to fill the gap from the percussion section, where she'd been a trio with Lee and Neji since middle school.

Lastly, Shikamaru and Ino led their sections into the throng, trumpet and clarinet singing triumphantly.

The floor trembled with the force of their fortissimo chord.

The rest of the piece passed in near-perfection, excepting one squeak from Sakura and a horrendous wrong note from Naruto. Sasuke was perfect, as expected. They spent the rest of the class playing it section by section until it was flawless.

"All right all right all right! Shut up!" Kakashi drawled. "Saturday morning. Be here at seven am sharp or suffer my wrath."

"Yessir!"

"Good! Get out!"

They fled the room and vowed to come an hour early on Saturday just in case they had to help a pregnant woman to the hospital. Or something else time consuming and wrath-inducing.

**XoxoxoxoX**

**A/N: **...You actually read it. I'm going to go hide now and pretend this never happened.


End file.
